Say you won the lottery..

[Seshat]

Travel in physical comfort (because I need to), & see things for myself. Glaciers. Stone circles. Castles.

The House, of course. With a dedicated library room, dedicated art room, etc.

Buy an old retirement village or similar complex, set it up and staff it for young people who are disabled enough to need nursing support, but mentally competent to live their own lives.

There are many, many such people trapped in inappropriate places - nursing homes for the elderly (where the care they get tends towards 'palliative', not 'life-supporting'); or care homes for the mentally incompetent, where they are treated as if they can't plan and live their own lives and make their own decisions.

Or, like a friend of mine, they're bedridden but spend much of their day alone and with noone available to help them if things go wrong.

[Stormraven]

I talk about my house because that would be the biggest thing I would do for me - and my lady. The house would be fairly big, so we could both have proper offices, and a library capable of handling an astounding volume of books.

And then we'd fill that library. And I'd build a separate one for my RPG library/collection. And I'd have an enclosed pool so I can swim without being hated on by the sun, and a large outdoor run for our cats.

Where I'd build it is an open question, but I do like the idea of Ireland.

There are charities, of course, many - the ASPCA, for one, and several medical charities.

[Amina516]

My favorite daydream.

Id buy my brother and sis in law a brand new matching set of Subarus (They always end up with junky used cars that suck money...) As well as a house for them.

Id also buy cars for a cousin of mine, as well as pay off any debt any of the above had. Id start college funds for my kids and niece and nephews and younger brother. Cars and pay off mortgage for my dad and mom, also give them all mad money to do with what they liked.

LEts see for me: Build my dream house (which isnt a mansion, but just a nice place to chill), which would include a library to rival anything else out there. Im talking thousands of books, a card catalouge, fireplaces, old armor suits and weaponry on the wall with comfy chairs. Coffee bar in the corner.

Buy my hubby his dream audi and encourage him to go back to school.

I would travel extensively, taking whoever wanted to come, with me. (whos signing up? ) and then, when I was settled, I think Id pursue my dream of being a doctor.

/sigh.

A girl can dream, cant she?

(Id visit all you guys too!! Thatd be awesome..maybe book an entire cruise ship for a CS cruise, with Raps as the shirtless Cruise coordinator.)

[RetailWorkhorse]

I'm going to Disney World.

[ArcticChicken]

Europe with my boyfriend. We'd hop on a plain, then take trains wherever whimsy takes us. Then on to Russia, China, and Japan, then India, the holy land, Egypt, maybe South Africa. The Galapagos islands, the Caribbean, all of South America.

The most important thing to me is the travel, but I'd also commission clothing from several historical periods, I learn live steel fighting, get an assortment of pretty toys, the prettiest being a replica Silver Ghost with a fully electric engine.

[Amina516]

I'm going to Disney World.

Well said...

[Mike Taylor]

1. Pay off my car.
2. Pay off my credit card debt.
3. Retire early and move back home to Georgia.
4. Buy myself a large piece of property in my home county and build three homes on it. One for myself, one for my parents and grandmother, and one for my learning disabled sister.
5. Outwardly, my home would be unremarkable and would probably resemble one of the older homes. The furnishings would all be modest, but new and well made. Throughout the house there would be stuff here and there to attest to my geekery. I always wanted a life-sized prop replica of the Doctor's TARDIS, for example. That might stand in the corner of my living room while a Dalek prop stands silently guarding the foyer, for example. Yes, there will be a gaming room.
6. Life-time membership to Dragon*Con. 'Nuff said.
7. Make good on a long overdue promise to myself to visit foreign countries. I have cousins in England, high school classmates in Sweden and old buddies in Japan.

[Antisocial_Worker]

A tenth would go to my church. Immediately. The building could use some help and they could use some oomph in all the good they try to do.

Next? Yes, like many I would purchase a house, but not just any house... 139 Montford Avenue, Asheville, NC to be precise. I've always loved that house. And after buying the house would come the renovations. This house does happen to be for sale and I managed to find an online tour of that house, only to discover that nobody's touched the kitchen since, I would estimate, about 1972.

And now, the fun stuff. Assuming money was no object at all it would be time to get the ball rolling on some major improvements about town. There's a planned performing arts center that could use a major benefactor. I think I'd volunteer on the condition that I get to choose the architectural style.

There's also a traffic circle by the courthouse that could use a nice fountain.

The children's museum needs funding to move to their new location, so there's that, and then a new location for the earth sciences museum, and that would allow the art museum to expand into the space formerly occupied by those two -- but let's not forget the major new addition to the existing building.

While that's going on, there are a dozen or more parking lots downtown that could do with some highrises. A nice mix of affordable housing, middle-class condos, and we can't forget the fancy people who demand luxury penthouses. Also, I think downtown could use a nice clocktower... something with statues representing the four seasons, plus a nice landscaped plaza... Maybe a couple of those parking lots could be made into nice parks and when all is said and done in the middle of town it's definitely time to start snatching up all the big forested plots for sale on the outskirts of town and turn them over to the nature conservancies as fast as the ink can dry on the legal papers.

Yeah...

[JLG]

I would just relax and get to do daily things without having to worry about affording it. Like I would go to the grocery store with no budget. I would go to Target and just put whatever I wanted into the cart.

After I did that I would go on a cruise and buy a house in a nice quiet area where I could read all the books I can't get to now because I am always to tired to crack them open.

Since I no longer have to work I would start volunteering again and donate money to school so kids can have up to date books and all the supplies the classroom needs.

And take nice long walks where I can enjoy everything without being tired all the time.

[AriGriffin]

First I would take care of several medical issues from vision to dental.
Then I would buy a couple of properties (Disney World; Manteo, NC; Wilmington, NC; Raleigh, NC; New Bern, NC; Blowing Rock, NC; Williamsburg, VA; Ashville, NC; Atlanta/Alpharetta, GA) and pay for them in full to turn them into bed and breakfasts. I would also travel the world and meet my favorite celebrities. Oh, and I'd also pay for The Kids in the Hall to go on tour again. I would also open a free spay/neuter clinic and makeover the local animal shelter. It would no longer be a kill shelter and the animals would recieve vet care (spay/neuter if not already), have steady (excellent quality) food, and all would get trained on tricks and any behavior issues worked out.

[AccountingDrone]

then i would buy myself all new, top of the line caving and climbing gear, and set up an endowment for my local caving grotto.

then, skydiver certification!

i would also at some point participate as a soloist in the texas water safari.

I sent you a PM, but heck, Anmar is an interesting guy and proud of what he does .. cave rescue.

http://lifestyle.ca.msn.com/real-lif...0857951&page=8

I am sure that Anmar would be more than happy to give you a hand setting it all up. He even suckered me into volunteering to be a rescue training dummy [well they have to lug me in and then lug me out ... as practice in body extraction =)] some time I am in his area and he is running a class =)

[Indigo]

I'd set up college funds for anyone who needed it/wanted it in my family. Give my parents a good hunk of the money so they can have a comfortable retirement when it comes. Go to both Disneys .

Then I'd donate money to the county school system with the stipulation that it be used to support the arts programs and add on more choices in foreign language (right now all they have is spanish).

After I make sure that the family and myself are comfortable, I'd probably go back to work. I get bored not doing anything.

[Mishi]

I'd put a chunk of it into a high-interest fund, and use part of the interest as donations to charities that catch my eye.

For me, I'd buy a large block of land and build a huge, accessible low-set house so that my nanna-in-law can come and live with us without ever worrying about having to live in a nursing home. I'd have beautiful gardens and lots of animals, as well as two other houses, one for my husband's step-sister and one for my best friend so that they can take turns looking after the animals and travelling with us. Once the kids have grown up, I'd like to take in foster kids, runaways and young parents in order to give them some useful life/work skills. For Rugz, I'd buy a Llama or two (he's wanted one since he was 10), a gorgeous car and an awesome PC gaming rig.

[AdminAssistant]

Hm, hope it's not too late to add.

In terms of family, I'd set up a separate, limited "family fund." You're instantly disqualified from using it if I a) don't know who you are or b) haven't seen you in more than 10 years. (Have to protect yourself from all of the "family" coming out of the woodwork.)

Increasingly, I don't know that I'd buy a house...or at least not a BIG house. Wherever I live, I'll have a big library/office and the fiance will have a gaming room. New cars though. Hell yes.

Charity-wise: I'd send a lot to my undergrad, especially to expand the Theatre Library and maybe set up a scholarship fund for students interested in history/dramaturgy. I'd probably do the same at my master's program...set up a scholarship in the name of my advisor ONLY for the MA students. Not sure about where I currently am. I'd probably just become an advocate for equalizing pay for GTA's in the sciences and the humanities...and maybe set up arts/humanities GRAs and fellowships that actually pay a living wage.

[MaggieTheCat]

The only reason my husband and I might buy a new house would be if we wanted to move locations...it gets damn hot here during the summer and ultimately we would probably like something a little more temperate (but still with decent winters!) The house we're in now is big enough for us. We don't want some 4 story 12 bedroom place, even if we had maids and housekeepers and whatnot to take care of it. Although I WOULD like to build a room somewhere, someday, where I can set up a ton of aquariums/terrariums/other habitats for all the pets that I can dream of.

I would like to see more of the U.S. I haven't been to a lot of places, and just off the top of my head, I would like to visit NYC, Maine (for the lobster!?), The Grand Canyon, Mt. Rushmore, Yellowstone (been there once but it was ages ago and I don't remember it), the Redwood Forest, and Disney Land. We spent exactly 1 day in Disney Land last year and I LOVED IT but 1 day obviously is not enough. I want to go back for a week sometime, someday. That would probably be my very first destination.

We would probably visit Japan for a while. A few weeks at most, I think. I wouldn't mind seeing England either, but again, probably only for a few weeks. I have no desire to travel anywhere else outside the U.S., honestly. 1) we'd have to be away from our cats for way too long 2) the only foreign language either of us speaks is Japanese, and even that is limited, and I would be very shy/uncomfortable going to a place where I don't know the language 3) neither of us like traveling all that much.

I might open a bakery of some kind. If I honestly did not need the money, it might be some kind of a "all profit goes to X charity" kind of bakery. Not sure.